Improvement in electrographic vote-recorder



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T. A. EDISON.

. Electric vote-flecorde r; No. 90,646, Patented June 1, 1869.

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THOMAS A. EDISON, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND DEWITT O. ROBERTS, OF SAME PLACE.

i MPROVEMENT IN ELECTROGRAPHIC V-OTE RECORDER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 90,646,'datod J uno l, 1869.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS A. Enisomof Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful apparatus named Electrographic Vote Recorder and Register, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description,-reference being had to the accompanying drawing. which representsa plan view'of the apparatus, and to the letters of reference thereon.

The object of my invention is to produce an apparatus which records and registers in an instant,- and with great accuracy the votes of legislative bodies, thus avoiding loss of valuable time consumed in counting and registering the votes and names, as done in the usual man- 'ner ;'and my invention consists in applying an electrographic apparatus in such a manner that each member, by moving a switch to either of two points, representing an affirmative and opposing vote, has his name imprinted, by means of electricity, under the desired head,"on a previously-prepared paper, and at I the sametime-the number of votes is indicated on a-dial-plate by the operation;

Referring to the drawings, in the centralportion of the plate a a is secured a block, k,

i hard rubber.

Opposite the intervening spaces between twdnames the upper faces of the rails jj are intersected by metallic strips 0 o o o o o.

On the rails jj are mounted two rollers, q q, insulated from one another, and insulated from and surrounded by the cylinder 1), in such a manner that the rollers q q project beyond said cylinder 12 and rest immediately upon the rails. These rollers are metallic, and the larger one, 11, is of such a size as to come in con met with a chemically prepared paper placed- I upon the types, and is, furthermore, in communication with battery I) by means ot couductiug-wire T1, or in any other suitable 1nanner. i

The rollers q q communicate with the two them operate the armatures v o, the escapements w w and the pointers mm, which latter marked-with as many figures as there are voters;

is connected with and;operates the apparatus in the following manner: The pole c is in constant communication with the metallic types lm', representing,respectively, no and yes,- by means of the conducting-wires y z but the pole c is connected bythe wires 0 c 0",w1th as many switches a e as there are voters.

From the points f f g g the conducting- .wires M h h pass-to'the metallic strips 0 o o 0', and from thence to the nearest metallic seen in the column to the left.

From the pole d of battery 1) communication is established with the cylinder p by the wire r r, and from the same pole by the wire it u t rollers q q. I

The apparatus is placed before the recordin g clerks desk, and a paper, which is previlution for that purpose, is placed upon the types, and covering the two columns and their heading.

Every voter is also provided witha switch,

sion may require, on the point f Y or g. Thus an electric current is established between the pole c of the battery, the switch e c, and the types I m, and the clerk then rolls the rollers q q with cylinder 1) on the paper upon the types. As soon as the cylinder p comes on the type of the headings the circuit becomes completed through the paper, (as {the wires 3 y connect the pole c with the types, and the wire 1 the pole d with the cylinderanddemagnets '17 'v" by the wires 8 s, and through show the numbers of votes on the dial-plates The battery I), with the two poles c and d,

type, or they may pass first to thetypes and p then branch back to the-respective strips, as

to the two magnets, where theaforesaid' conducting-wires s 8 lead to the "two insulated ously chemically prepared for printing by electricity by saturating it in any known so e, and moves the same ad libitum, as the o'cca thereby discoloring composes the chemicals th the types. and thus no decomposition takes place, and no name lshown.

The roller 12 passing on and leaving the types the circuit becomes broken;.but as soon as the rollers q q come in contact with the metallic strips 0 0' the circuit from pole 0 through the switch 6, wire ii, strip 0(, and. through roller q, magnet 12', wire t and u to pole d, becomes closed, the armature '0' attracted the escapement w, and with it the pointer :0 moved forward, and here one nega tive vote recorded, 8m. 4

Thus, it will be seen, the names of all the voters are tgrinted on their respective heads and also e whole number of votes counted in an instant or as long as it will-require time to roll the cylinder 12 over the types containin the list of all the names in metallic types, with more dispatch and accuracy than it can possibly be donein any other way.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination of a switch or switches c 0', types and cylinder 1), with an electn'cbattery, connected and operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination of switch e,'strips o 0', types, and the separated and insulated rollers q q", magnets v v", armature, cscapement, pointer, and dial plate, with the battery I), connected and operated substantially as and for the purpose above described.

3. The combination of switch, types, cylinder 1:, rollers q q, strips 0 o, and insulators j j, magnets v of, armature, &c., constructed in titlei manner and for the purpose above specifi In testimony whereof I have signed my name tothis specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

THOMAS A.'EDISON. Witnesses:'

- CARROLL D. WRIGHT, M. S. G. WILDE. 

